Strawberry Pretzel Salad

If you aren’t familiar with strawberry pretzel salad, you might assume—with horror—that it involves tossing strawberries, pretzels, and greens together with some kind of vinaigrette. But the dish involves neither vegetables or dressing. Instead, it more closely resembles the wiggly jello salads that were all the rage in America during the 1960s. With a base of crushed pretzels, a layer of Cool Whip mixed with cream cheese, and a topping of bright red strawberry jello, strawberry pretzel salad is delightfully salty-sweet, creamy, and crunchy at the same time. Though a slice may remind you of a no-bake cheesecake, it is not typically eaten as a dessert. Rather, the salad is usually served as a side and is a staple at picnics, potlucks, and Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. 

I didn’t grow up eating strawberry pretzel salad, but I’ve since become a fan. After all, what’s not to love about pretzels, cream cheese, and jello? Inspired by this American classic, I wanted to come up with a from-scratch version that pays homage to the original, while also leaning into the tanginess of cream cheese and the natural sweetness of fresh strawberries. This version skips the Cool Whip and the strawberry jello mix. Instead, it involves making a no-bake cheesecake for the filling and a homemade strawberry syrup for the jello—both of which are good enough to enjoy on their own.

The Pretzel Crust

Coming up with the crust was pretty straightforward. I knew I wanted to blitz the pretzels in a food processor with some granulated sugar until sandy, then toss the crumbs in melted butter. The question was: to bake or not to bake? I could have kept this a 100% no-bake dessert, but toasting the pretzel crust in the oven for just 10 minutes added a depth of flavor the no-bake version simply didn’t have. Though I’m normally an advocate of seasoning everything thoroughly, you’ll notice that I’ve skipped the salt in the crust. Pretzels are well salted already, and I found that any additional salt was not only unnecessary, but excessive.

A Filling Good Enough to Eat On Its Own

No hate on Cool Whip, but I wanted a filling that was more substantial—one good enough to eat on its own. I turned to former Serious Eats editor Stella Parks’ easy no-bake cheesecake, which gets its tart flavor from cream cheese and light texture from whipped cream. It’s a recipe she describes as “embarrassingly simple.” There’s no baking or water bath involved like there would be with a regular cheesecake, and no gelatin required to firm it up; all it involves is beating together cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and whipping in some heavy cream until it reaches stiff peaks, then refrigerating until set. Paired with the salty-sweet pretzel crust and fruity jello topping, the filling makes a satisfying strawberry pretzel salad that echoes the best cheesecakes.

A Fruitier Jello

I’ll be the first to admit I have a soft spot for jello mix. (Besides fruit or the occasional store-bought birthday cake, my grandma only ever made jello for dessert, and it was always the highlight of dinner at her place.) I wanted a more fruit-forward jello topping though, one that tasted like fresh strawberries and wasn’t as one-dimensional as jello from a box. Though you could certainly use your favorite jello mix here, there’s something incredibly satisfying—and delicious—about making your own strawberry syrup and turning it into jello.

To make the syrup, I start by blooming powdered gelatin and simmering fresh strawberries with water, sugar, and lemon juice, which adds brightness and helps to balance the sweetness. Once the fruit has softened, I strain the syrup, whisk in the bloomed gelatin, and allow it to cool to room temperature. You don’t want to rush this part: Pouring warm syrup on top of the filling will melt the cream cheese, resulting in bits of softened dairy floating in the jello. An ice bath isn’t an option for speeding things up, though, as it’d be too cold and would solidify the mixture before it’s even poured onto the cream cheese layer. Only a gradual cooling will do.

The biggest downside to using fresh strawberries for the jello is the color—they simply don't produce a syrup as vivid as artificial boxed strawberry jello. If that pop of color is important to you, you can easily do exactly what the boxed stuff does for its unnaturally bright red hue: whisk in a drop or two of red food coloring. 

Once at room temperature, the syrup is gently layered onto the filling, followed by slices of strawberries, which will then be encased in the jello once it sets. To avoid the precarious process of walking a sloshing not-quite-jello salad to the fridge, I recommend putting the baking dish in the fridge first—then carefully topping with the syrup and strawberries. Chilled and portioned, it’s hard not to marvel at how satisfying each bite is. Jello salads may be dated, but something this good should never go out of style.